Front of House Manager (Part-Time)

Job Title: Front of House Manager
Job Status: Non-exempt part-time position 
Rate: $18/hour 
Reports to: Audience Services Manager

About TimeLine

TimeLine Theatre Company, recipient of the 2016 MacArthur Award for Creative and Effective Institutions, is a Chicago not-for-profit theatre company with an annual budget of more than $2 million. Since its inception in 1997, the company has garnered more than 50 awards for artistic excellence and business management. TimeLine is now also preparing for its next chapter with the establishment of a new home in Chicago’s Uptown neighborhood.

Through 25 seasons dedicated to presenting stories that explore today’s social and political issues through the lens of the past, TimeLine’s rich production history highlights a mix of perspectives. From LGBTQIA+ experiences (The Normal Heart, Boy) to Jewish experiences (A Shayna Maidel, My Name is Asher Lev) to issues of cultures intersecting and intertwining (A Walk in the Woods, Chimerica, Oslo) to Black life in America (Raisin in the Sun, Kill Move Paradise, Relentless), TimeLine’s collaborative approach to dramaturgy highlights many unique and powerful stories. At TimeLine, we believe that we must expand the lens through which history is viewed and fully engage with a multitude of perspectives to better serve and reflect our community and our collective histories. 

While our programming seeks to reflect and support our community, we acknowledge that TimeLine has more work to do to transform into a fully antiracist, multicultural organization. Our staff, Board, and Company are committed to instituting antiracist policies and practices, championing diversity and inclusion on our stages, and fighting back against the years of oppression that our BIPOC colleagues have experienced in the theatre and performing arts industry. You can read more about our ongoing work here: timelinetheatre.com/2020/11/everyones-history.

About the Position

If you are hired as the Front of House Manager at TimeLine Theatre, you will enjoy a part-time (20—29 hours/week), non-exempt, hourly schedule. While working our performance schedule (shows are usually Wednesday through Sunday—so evening and weekend availability is a must), you will be responsible for providing excellent customer service to our patrons in person as a House Manager or a Box Office Lead and supervising 1-2 members of the Front of House team. 

The Front of House Manager will also have paid opportunities to grow an arts administrator and to learn about TimeLine as a whole with hours dedicated to professional development and all-staff meetings. You will report directly to the Audience Services Manager, but will work intimately with many other departments of TimeLine.

Responsibilities/Duties

Customer Service 

  • At a typical performance, the Front of House Manager will be the Manager-on-Duty in either a Box Office Lead or House Management role and work alongside members of the Front of House team to provide a consistent, friendly, and welcoming experience to all patrons
  • Resolves high-level patron issues/complaints in the moment
  • Works with Audience Services Manager to maintain, improve, and enhance accessibility efforts of the organization—with particular attention to ADA guidelines and implementation 
  • Listens to patron issues and/or concerns and resolve them in a friendly and efficient manner
  • Collaborates with Audience Services Manager and Audience Services Assistant to create and execute unique experiences for groups and special events 

Front of House Operations 

  • Coordinates the smooth operation of the house before, during, and after performances and special events
  • Orients and trains volunteer ushers, with an eye towards creating a consistently welcoming and inclusive environment
  • Works with Audience Services Manager to hire, train, evaluate, schedule, and supervise the par-time Front of House staff
  • Works with Audience Services Manager to establish and implement consistent Audience Services goals, values, standards, and mission
  • Manages concessions budget, maintains inventory of all food, beverage, and merchandise and places orders when necessary—with the assistance of the Audience Services Manager 
  • Manages FOH supplies budget, maintains inventory of cleaning, First Aid, and general FOH upkeep supplies, including parking validations—with the assistance of the Audience Services Manager 

Will Call Management

  • Coordinates the smooth operation of will call and the Box Office before, during, and after performances and special events
  • Establish strong working knowledge of TimeLine’s databases and develop, maintain, and use queries to pull lists for various administrative needs such as mailings, reporting and analysis
  • Maintain a working knowledge of our single ticket and subscription pricing structures, and discounts—with an eye towards increasing the accessibility of tickets 

Safety 

  • Collaborate with Stage Management and TimeLine’s COVID Compliance Cohort to ensure that TimeLine’s COVID protocols are being fulfilled
  • Ensures the safety of patrons and staff through the enforcement of emergency procedures
  • Maintains the cleanliness, accessibility, and safety of interior and exterior public spaces, which includes mopping, shoveling/icing sidewalks in the winter, etc.
  • Works with Audience Services Manager and General Manager to maintain, improve, and enhance security and emergency procedures for the organization
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Company Culture

  • With the Audience Services Manager, provide leadership to the Front of House team 
  • Create an inclusive atmosphere through honest, clear communication with patrons, staff, and teammates 
  • Be knowledgeable about the company, our mission, values, current productions, current season, and upcoming events 
  • Works with Audience Services Manager and Director of Marketing and Communications to ensure consistency of TimeLine brand throughout all customer service interactions
  •  

Compensation

  • Year-round, non-exempt, part-time hourly position
  • $18 per hour
  • Paid time off including vacation/sick time
  • 20-29 hours/week during performance schedule

Qualifications/Skills

  • Must be available to work evenings and weekends, in particular Wednesdays – Sundays, with occasional Tuesday performances 
  • Prior experience performing high volume customer service-related work
  • Prior experience in supervision and/or people management 
  • Excellent interpersonal, written, and verbal communication skills
  • Experience with cash management
  • Must be computer proficient, especially with a PC, Microsoft Office, and Google Drive
  • Some experience with database use and management, preferably a ticketing or donations-based system. Specific experience with PatronManager is a plus
  • Experience working for a not-for-profit arts organization or in arts administration is a plus, but any customer service or teamwork experience is welcome! 

Personal Characteristics

  • You have demonstrated the ability to thrive and multi-task in a fast-paced, high energy, multicultural environment
  • You enjoy assuming responsibility, and take initiative using good judgment and strong attention to detail
  • You are a leader with a genuine desire to see your teammates achieve their potential and thrive 
  • You feel responsible for the environment around you and seek to improve it with every action 
  • You get energy from new perspectives
  • You maintain a calm, professional demeanor in public-facing situations
  • You can effectively identify and communicate issues or problems to your team
  • You are punctual and have a strong track record of showing up
  • You have a drive not just to complete your own projects and work, but also to participate in organization-wide collaboration. You are positive and forward-thinking.

Employment Policy 

Apply for this position if you are interested in obtaining a foundation in arts management at an award-winning theatre while supporting the theatre’s goal of being one of the best customer experiences in Chicago theatre. 

TimeLine is committed to monitoring public health recommendations, as well as the best practices for wellness and safety of all of those we serve. If you have any questions regarding COVID safety plans or compliance, please do not hesitate to reach out. For more information on our public COVID safety protocols, you can visit timelinetheatre.com/health-and-safety

It is an essential practice of TimeLine Theatre Company to recruit, hire, train and promote individuals, based upon personal capabilities and qualifications and without regard to race, color, age, sex, sexual orientation, religion, national origin or ancestry, marital status, citizenship, disability, military status, creed, or any other trait or characteristic protected by law. TimeLine Theatre Company is dedicated to the goal of building a diverse staff and an inclusive work environment. This policy of Equal Employment Opportunity applies to policies and procedures relating to all terms and conditions of employment at TimeLine Theatre.

To Apply 

  1. Please email, in one clearly-labeled document (PDF preferred), a resume and your answers to the short answer questions below. Your email should be to the attention of Kellyn Henthorn, Audience Services Manager, at HR@timelinetheatre.com with the subject line of your email, “Front of House Manager Position”
  2. We will reach out to you whether or not you are called in for interviews. Please no phone calls. If you do have questions about your application, please email us at the above address. 
  3. Applications will be accepted through June 30, 2022. 

Short Answer Questions – REQUIRED 

In addition to submitting your resume, please take the time to answer the following questions. You do not have to write a cover letter for this application, so we ask that you put your efforts into answering these questions in complete, thoughtful sentences (no need to write more than 3-4 sentences per question). Thanks!

1. What is your customer service philosophy? How do you see yourself practicing it at TimeLine Theatre? (Please be specific and use examples if you can!)

 

2. Staff members at TimeLine Theatre Company share the core values of the organization. Please choose one value from the list below, and tell us how you have used that value in a professional setting in the past? 

  • ANTIRACIST Centering racial equity as we build a just future
  • COLLABORATIVE Valuing teamwork as a creative force
  • EXCEPTIONAL Exemplifying excellence and innovation in everything we do 
  • FISCALLY RESPONSIBLE Managing resources effectively and appropriately 
  • INCLUSIVE Prioritizing access in all its forms
  • INTIMATE Creating a close connection between art and audience 
  • RESPECTFUL Listening and being open to everyone’s perspective

3. How can this position and the skills you’ll learn at TimeLine contribute to your personal or professional goals? 

4. How did you find out about this position?